Posts Tagged ‘Marcellus Shale’

Officials at the Wilkes Barre Scranton International Airport announced a significant increase in passenger traffic attributed to the Marcellus Shale natural gas boom in NEPA. Gas field workers from Texas, Oklahoma and othe states are flying in and out of the airport as they support drilling efforts and pipeline construction in Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania. Additionally, gas industry management and professional support people are using the airport as their main hub to access their company offices in NEPA. Airport officials note that airline carriers are adding larger planes on select routes to accommodate the natural gas industry passenger boom. The 13 trial lawyers at DLP, representing catastrophically injured individuals in gas drilling, gas truck, quarry explosions and othe serious accidents continue to follow this and other issues in the Marcellus Shale regions of NEPA, Central and throughout Pennsylvania.

Reports today note that a New York natural gas company and Pennsylvania natural gas company are at odds over the distribution of natural gas to residential and business consumers in Susquehanna County Pennsylvania. Both companies are trying to capitalize on the Marcellus Shale gas boom taking place it NEPA and elsewhere throughout the state. Proponents of natural gas drilling have predicted that competition from companies would occur and would benefit users with lower gas prices. The right to distribute natural gas by the two companies is being reviewed by the PUC.

The 13 trial lawyers at DOUGHERTY LEVENTHAL PRICE LLP–DLP—PENNSYLVANIA GAS TRUCK, AUTOMOBILE, GAS DRILLING RIG AND EXPLOSION ACCIDENT LAWYERS—-continue to follow this and other gas drilling stories in NEPA and Central Pennsylvania.

Republican legislators in Harrisburg continue to push for elimination of local control through traditional zoning laws and regulations of the location of drill rig pads in city, towns and boroughs throughout the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania. Although local zoning has controlled municipal planning for decades of all businesses, the Republican leadership is seeking to carve out exceptions for the natural gas industry. Under proposed legislation local towns that enforce zoning laws would not receive funding from taxes (or “impact fees) imposed on gas drillers per gas drilling rigs in a town. The new law would give authority to the State Attorney General over where a drilling site can be located. Many residents, both Republican and Democrat are protesting the proposed law.

Today’s Marcellus Shale news includes the Republican dominated Legislature in Harrisburg failing to reach a compromise on major tax and regulatory legislation affecting Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling companies but passing noncontroversial legislation requiring signs to spell out the GPS location of drilling pads and drilling rig sites.  With primary elections only months away, and even the most conservative constituents calling for taxing and regulating of gas drillers  in light of service cuts and local school district tax increases, the Republican Senate and House leaders are calling for Governor Corbett to alter his pro gas industry no tax/no regulation policies and reach a compromise quickly avoiding campaign issues. Additionally, DEP officials announced the proposed construction of two (2) deep well fracking waste water disposal sites in Warren County. Deep well disposal sites recently came under scrutiny after earthquakes near deep well disposal sites occurred in Youngstown, Ohio. Finally, Pennsylvania electric producers are pushing to take advantage of the Marcellus Shale natural gas boom in Pennsylvania and are moving to switch from coal dependent to natural gas dependent electrical generation plants. The electric companies are hoping to lower the cost of electricity for Pennsylvania residential and business consumers. Natural gas drilling industry leaders have predicted this positive development for Pennsylvania consumers for some time.

The (13) trial lawyers at Dougherty Leventhal Price LLP–DLP—PENNSYLVANIA TRUCK ACCIDENT AND AUTO ACCIDENT CATASTROPHIC INJURY LAWYERS—contnue to follow these and other natural gas drilling rig issues in NEPA, Central and elsewhere in Pennsylvania including Lackawanna, Luzerne, Wyoming, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Bradford, Tioga, Potter, Cameron, Clinton and Lycoming Counties.

As natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale regions of Pennsylvania intensifies and expands, Pennsylvania Republican dominated Legislature and Governor Corbett continue to delay passage of regulations to regulate or tax the expanding industry. This is so even though so called “conservative” and “gas industry friendly” states such as Texas continue to tax gas profits at significant rates, but also continue to pass and enforce regulations on almost every portion of the gas drilling industry. Case in point are the new disclosure regulations which become enforceable in Texas on February 1, 2012. The new regulations require gas companies to report the nature of chemicals used in the fracking process. These reporting requirements have been sought by environmental groups and landowners for some time. Additionally, gas drilling companies in Texas must now report the amounts of fresh water used daily at each natural gas drilling pad. This is significant because Texas is in the grasp of its worst drought in state history. Estimates are that between one (1) per cent and two (2) per cent of all fresh water in Texas is utilized in the fracking process. Critics say this could be higher. These issues have not been officially regulated to any extent in Pennsylvania. Meanwhile the debate, mostly among controlling Republican members–many receiving significant criticism in their home districts—continues in Harrisburg.

The thirteen (13) Trial Lawyers at Dougherty Leventhal Price LLP–DLP–PENNSYLVANIA CATASTROPHIC AND SERIOUS INJURY ATTORNEYS—-continue to follow closely these and other Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling rig issues throughout Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania including Lackawanna, Luzerne, Wyoming, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Bradford, Tioga, Potter, and Lycoming Counties.

News in and around the Marcellus shale natural gas drilling region continues to mount at a staggering rate. Stories today include a push by Pennsylvania’s top government officials, including Senator Bob Casey to encourage Shell Oil and Gas to build a huge natural gas processing plant in Pennsylvania. Additionally, today is the last day for public comment on the pending natural gas drilling regulations in New York. Other reports note a fracking liquid spill caused intentionally  by vandals in Bradford County; a pipe line easement deal on a rails to trails project in Susquehanna County and reports of significant positive hotel and airport usage increases throughout Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania.

The thirteen (13) trial lawyers ant Dougherty Leventhal Price LLP–DLP–PENNSYLVANIA CATASTROPHIC ACCIDENT LAWYERS–continue to follow these and othe natural gas drilling issues throughout the Marcellus Shale Regions of Pennsylvania and New York.

With the ever-growing number of employees working in the Marcellus Shale gas drilling field comes the increasing risk of workers being injured on the job. Here at Dougherty, Leventhal & Price, we have the experience to assist you in the litigation of your workers compensation injury claim should you be injured on the job. A work injury can often be the result of the negligence of a third party. In such situations, the injured worker, in addition to having a claim against his employer under the Workers Compenastion Act, may also have a civil liability claim against the negligent third party whose action caused or contributed to the injury. The lawyers at DLP will carefully review your case to insure that all of your rights are properly protected and that you are fairly compensated for your injuries.

Gushers highlight gas potential of Pa.’s Marcellus Shale; drillers boost production estimates

ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) — Two unexpected gushers in northeastern Pennsylvania are helping to illustrate the enormous potential of the Marcellus Shale natural gas field.

Each of the Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. wells in Susquehanna County is capable of producing 30 million cubic feet per day — believed to be a record for the Marcellus and enough gas to supply nearly 1,000 homes for a year. The landowners attached to the wells, who leased the well access, numbering fewer than 25, are splitting hundreds of thousands of dollars in monthly royalties.

“There was definitely excitement among the team that planned out these wells and executed their completion,” said Cabot spokesman George Stark.

Drilling companies knew the Marcellus held a lot of gas. They just had to figure out a way to get it out, and they say they’re getting better at it all the time.

The result is that the Marcellus, a rock formation beneath Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia and Ohio, has turned out to be an even more prolific source of gas than anyone anticipated. Energy firms are boosting their production targets, not only because new wells are coming on line but also because they’re managing to coax more gas from each well.

Operators say they have a greater understanding of the complicated geology of the Marcellus, allowing them to land their drill bits in the sweet spot of the formation. They’re drilling horizontally at greater distances, giving them access to more of the gas locked within the rock. And they’re tweaking how they break apart the shale.

“It’s like batting practice,” said Matt Pitzarella, spokesman for Range Resources Corp. “The more you swing the bat, the better you get.”

Fort Worth, Texas-based Range has boosted its estimate of the amount of natural gas it will ultimately be able to harvest from its Marcellus Shale wells, telling investors this month that it plans to triple production to 600 million cubic feet per day by the end of 2012.

Another major player, Chesapeake Energy Corp., has likewise reported a dramatic increase in expected well production. Early on, the Oklahoma City-based driller predicted that each well would yield 3.5 billion cubic feet of gas over its life span. That amount has since doubled, to more than 7 billion cubic feet, and continues to go up.

“Growing confidence in reserve quality is a major reason why many of the largest, most-successful, domestic and international energy companies are heavily investing in the Marcellus and other American shale plays,” said Jeff Fisher, Chesapeake’s senior vice president of production.

Indeed, major oil companies like Chevron Corp., Exxon Mobil Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell PLC have placed multibillion-dollar bets on the Marcellus, a 400-million-year-old rock formation that geologists say holds the nation’s largest reservoir of natural gas and perhaps the second-largest in the world.

To unlock the shale’s riches, drillers combine horizontal drilling with hydraulic fracturing, a technique known as fracking that pumps millions of gallons of water, along with sand and chemicals, into the well to creature fissures in the rock and allow natural gas to flow up. Fracking has raised environmental concerns, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is studying its impact on groundwater. The industry insists the process is environmentally safe.

The technology has unleashed a drilling frenzy in Pennsylvania — where more than 3,300 Marcellus wells have been sunk the past few years — and accounts for a twelvefold increase in U.S. shale gas production since 2000. Gas harvested from the Marcellus and other shale fields around the country — including the Barnett Shale in Texas and the Haynesville Shale in Louisiana — now represents a quarter of total U.S. natural gas production.

The new Cabot wells help illustrate why boosters believe the gas field could help steer U.S. energy policy for decades to come. They were also a nice bit of good news for Cabot, the Houston-based driller that endured two years of bad publicity after state regulators accused it of polluting water supplies in Dimock Township, Susquehanna County.

The wells — also located in Dimock — are “producing like gushers,” exulted Stark, the Cabot spokesman, helping to push the company’s daily production above 400 million cubic feet per day.

Like other drillers, Cabot has steadily increased the horizontal length of its wells, from an average of 2,100 feet in 2008 to 3,600 feet last year. It has seen a corresponding increase in capacity.

Capacity, though, does not always translate to production.

Cabot’s wells, and Marcellus wells in general, are not running at full tilt, mainly because the infrastructure required to take the gas from wellhead to market is not yet fully in place. An oversupply of natural gas and the availability of crews to fracture the wells are other limiting factors.

“We certainly have had to manage our pace of drilling with the installation of pipeline infrastructure and demand in the market,” Chesapeake’s Fisher said in a statement. “While some delays in production startups are common in the early phase of these large-scale plays, the industry is working hard to build the infrastructure that will enable Marcellus reserves to get to market for decades to come.”

The Marcellus isn’t the only shale formation in Pennsylvania that energy companies have their eye on. Drillers are just beginning to explore the gas-bearing Utica and Upper Devonian formations. The Utica is deeper that the Marcellus, and the Upper Devonian is shallower.

“It’s triple the resource potential under the same plot of land,” said Kevin Cabla, an energy analyst at Raymond James & Associates.

Posted at: Yahoo.com

The hydraulic fracturing process, also known as “well stimulation,” is vital to extracting natural gas from the Marcellus Shale and other geological formations in Pennsylvania. Over the course of 60 years, well stimulation has been researched, advanced and used across the United States as a safe and effective method to create tiny cracks in the targeted formation that allow natural gas to flow freely into a wellbore and up to the earth’s surface.

Hydraulic fracturing technology has been used to produce oil and natural gas since 1949. The process involves pumping a mixture made up of 99.5 percent water and sand, along with a minimal amount of additives, into the ground under high pressure. The solution opens tiny fractures in the rock to allow a pathway for the oil and gas to enter the wellbore. It typically takes about a week of round-the clock activity to complete a hydraulic fracturing operation, at which point the equipment is removed to allow the well to enter the final completion and production stage.

The Well Stimulation Process

Well developers begin the stimulation process once a well has been drilled to a desired vertical and horizontal depth, with a series of steel pipes, called casing strings, cemented in place along the length of the wellbore. The steel and cement isolates the well from the surrounding geology and groundwater zones found above. Groundwater sources are typically located a mile or more above the Marcellus Shale formation. A device known as a perforating gun is first lowered into the well to a designated location in the shale, and a charge is fired down the well from a wire at ground surface to perforate the steel casing, cement and the shale formation. This perforation stage creates small cracks, or fractures, in the rock.

A mixture of water, sand and chemicals is then injected into the wellbore under high pressure. The sand holds open the cracks in the rock to allow the well to produce natural gas. Water and sand make up about 99.5 percent of the fluid injected into the well, and the chemicals used in the process – both small in number and dilute in concentration – can be found in many household items.

Once the first zone of the well has been perforated and stimulated, a rubber plug is placed to isolate that area from the rest of the horizontal wellbore. The perforation and stimulation process then continues multiple times along the length of the formation to make the well as productive as possible. A bit is lowered into the well after the process is completed to drill out the rubber plugs and allow gas to flow to the surface.

Completing the Process

At the completion of the stimulation process, approximately 20-30 percent of the water flows back up the wellbore, where it is collected and stored in tanks or lined impoundments. This “flowback” water is transported to a permitted wastewater treatment facility for treatment and disposal, or treated and conveyed to another well site where it is recycled. Over the productive life of the well, additional “produced” water slowly comes to the surface, where it is collected in on-site storage tanks and transported as needed for treatment.

Protecting Groundwater

Agencies in Pennsylvania enforce stringent regulations to protect groundwater during both the drilling and well stimulation process. Marcellus Shale wells require multiple, redundant layers of steel casing and cement as well as strict quality control procedures to protect groundwater sources.

State oil and gas regulatory agencies, including the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, have not documented a case of drinking water contamination related to the stimulation of an oil or natural gas well. In April 2009, the Ground Water Protection Council stated that the chances of groundwater contamination due to this process are as low as 1 in 200,000,000.

Regulation of Water Withdrawals

Water use in the well stimulation process is regulated in Pennsylvania either by the state DEP, or the federal Susquehanna or Delaware River Basin Commissions, with approval
required for every withdrawal from streams or rivers. These withdrawals are limited to fraction of a waterway’s normal flow to protect aquatic life, and stream withdrawals can be halted in the event of low flow conditions. Water is either trucked or piped to drilling locations, where it is stored in secure, lined impoundments or tanks for use in the fracture process.

According to an analysis by the Susquehanna River Basin Commission, Marcellus Shale development at its anticipated peak levels of production in the Susquehanna River watershed would require the use of 60 million gallons of water a day. This amount is less than half of what is needed for recreational purposes, such as irrigating golf courses or making snow at ski resorts.

Recycling and New Technologies

The companies developing the Marcellus Shale are also advancing the treatment and recycling of water for use in multiple well stimulation procedures, along with research into using water impaired by acid mine drainage and other “lesser quality” water sources. Recycling efforts allow for a reduction in fresh water use required for each well, while the use of water from historic mining areas removes that water from stream flows, improving the quality of water in those streams in the process.

An equal amount of work is taking place to research the use of additives that are biodegradable and do not bioaccumulate in the environment, including ingredients found in many foods. Guar gum, a thickener used in dairy products, baked goods and ketchup, is used as a friction reducer in the well stimulation process, while citric acid, used in the production of soft drinks and wine, is effective in controlling iron in a wellbore. Pennsylvania’s winters have also led to the discovery of environmentally friendly additives required to prevent water from freezing during cold weather well stimulation, with the increased use of glycerin and potassium formate over material such as methanol, which is found in windshield cleaning solutions. Research continues to enhance recycling capabilities and identify effective biodegradable additives.

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Posted At: Pioga.org

Both the Senate and the House have passed a budget that fails to tax or charge any type of fee on Natural Gas extraction from the Marcellus Shale.

The issue of taxing of Marcellus Shale has been a major topic of discussion, especially in Northeastern Pennsylvania.  The impact of the extraction of Natural Gas from the Marcellus Shale has made some people very wealthy and others very upset.

Pennsylvania is the only major natural gas producing state that currently has no tax or extraction fee on natural gas.  Governor Tom Corbett campaigned on a platform of no taxes on Marcellus shale and has stuck to that campaign promise in his proposed budget, and the legislature follows suit.

A Quinnipiac poll in June 2011, showed that those polled support, 69 percent to 24 percent, a new tax on companies drilling for natural gas. Even 69 percent of Republicans polled support such a tax.

State Senator John Yudichak (D-14th) says the issue is not dead, and that the legislature will address the issue of Marcellus tax or fees this Fall.

Yudichak, a strong voice for a Marcellus Shale Impact Fee or Severance Tax, also stated that he is disappointed the legislature failed to enact a fair and responsible fee on natural gas drilling, which would have significantly helped address adverse environmental issues associated will drilling.

This is only the third time in more than 40 years that a Pennsylvania State Budget spends less than the previous years.  A major factor in the reduction in spending is the loss of federal stimulus money, which allowed Pennsylvania and many other states to save programs and jobs over the past two years.  That money is no longer available.

Yudichak, who joined his Democratic colleagues in solidarity in voting against the budget, was not pleased with the budget.  Yudichak says the plan falls short of preserving programs and services vital to Pennsylvania’s economic recovery.

On the $27.15 billion spending plan, Yudichak stated that the spending plan cuts too deeply into education and job creation programs, weakens the hospital system and fails to enact a responsible fee on Marcellus Shale drilling.

“For months, I have called for guiding this budget by two principles – job creation and making government more accountable to taxpayers,” Yudichak said.  “Unfortunately this budget falls severely short of these principles.”

Yudichak said school districts in the region will face a severe cut of $23,687,669 in this budget.  On average that is a 13.3 percent cut from 2010-2011.   He added that these districts will now have to cut vital educational programs and layoff teachers, students will be crowded into classrooms and households will inevitably see a spike in property taxes.

Northeastern Pennsylvania school districts will see significant reductions in state revenues.  The decrease in funding  from 2010 to 2011 is as follows:

·         Nanticoke – $1,580,628 less  – 13% cut

·         Hanover Area- $1,048,569 less – 13% cut

·         Hazleton Area – $4,516,132 less – 12% cut

·         Pittston Area – $1,260,312 less – 12% cut

·         Wilkes-Barre Area – $3,904,811 – less 14% cut

·         Wyoming Area – $986,676 less – 12% cut

·         Wyoming Valley West – $2,922,455 less – 14% cut

·         Pocono Mountain – $4,182,942 less – 17% cut

·         Jim Thorpe – $503,404 less – 16% cut

·         Lehighton – $1,196,384 less – 13% cut

·         Panther Valley – $1,234,349 less – 14% cut

·         Weatherly – $351,007 less – 10% cut

Yudichak added that colleges and universities throughout the state will receive significantly less funding in this year’s budget.

“We have some very worthy institutions in our region.  Unfortunately, our community colleges, our private colleges and universities, our state system schools and our state- related colleges will see their funding decrease, their tuition increase and the dream of higher education for many students will remain just a dream,” Yudichak said.

He added that cuts to job creation and business support programs in the state Department of Economic Development will harm efforts to rebuild Pennsylvania’s economy.

“It seems awfully misguided to cut proven job creation initiatives during a time of fiscal distress, yet these initiatives have also been zeroed out in this budget plan,” Yudichak said.  “True economic growth comes from solid programs that help businesses get off the ground and maintain their workforce.”

Yudichak added that despite modest restorations made to uncompensated care, in the amount of $16.5 million, hospitals are still negatively affected by budget cuts.

“These restorations are a good start, but hospitals really need more funding,” Yudichak said.  “And, with adultBasic not being funded in this budget, more and more individuals will turn to hospitals for care.”

“Here and now we have bipartisan support on a fair impact fee that would protect the environment as well as continue to grow the tremendous economic impact of the Marcellus Shale industry, yet it remains unfinished business,” Yudichak said.  “The people of Pennsylvania, by an overwhelming majority, have called for a fair and responsible tax or fee on natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale region.”

Yudichak finished by saying that while he understands the seriousness of Pennsylvania fragile economy, there were other option available to stem the harsh cuts made in this spending plan.

“I truly understand that with fiscal distress comes the need for a bit of belt tightening, but what I do not understand is why we are selling short the future of Pennsylvania with a budget that weakens job growth and fails to enact a responsible Marcellus Shale severance tax.”

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Posted At: Examiner.com